


Thawing a Frozen Heart

by QueenTora



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrien Agreste/Marinette Dupain-Cheng Angst, Adrien Agreste/Marinette Dupain-Cheng Fluff, F/M, Ladynoir | Adrien Agreste as Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng as Ladybug
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-29
Updated: 2020-10-01
Packaged: 2021-03-08 00:34:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,985
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26716852
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/QueenTora/pseuds/QueenTora
Summary: With all of Marinette’s class grown up and out of college, Marinette thought the craziness of her life had passed. Little did she know, a get together of the old group was in order form none other than Gabriel Agreste to take place in his winter estate. What could go wrong?
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir & Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Kudos: 15





	1. The Beginning

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! This is my first fanfiction and I'm a little nervous to post the first chapter haha. Thank you to all my beta-readers and friends for reading it over for me! A little notice, this first chapter is setting up the dynamic for the whole work between Ladybug and Chat Noir. Ladynoir galore! I hope you enjoy it! ~ QueenTora

“CHAT!”

Chat Noir only had a second to turn before he felt a blow to his stomach. BOOM. Suddenly, he was flung across the street into a building from a devastating kick to the stomach by the awencoming Akuma. Debris from the wall he crashed into was swirling around him and he felt the air fill his lungs again. Ladybug swung over immediately to check on her injured partner.

“Oh Chat I-I’m so sorry I didn’t see it in time I- DUCK!”

They barely had the time to dodge as the Akuma sent needles in their direction, ducking into the nearby alley. This Akuma was horrible and relentless, a poor girl lost a Gabriel competition that she had spent months working on her entries and lost by one point. She had hit her breaking point and was taken over by Hawkmoth shortly after. She was silver head to toe, with a crown of needles on her head followed by a short jumpsuit with gems covering the entire torso and had chunky heels to match. Mascara ran down her face from the tears she had cried when she had lost and her hair was in a braid crown on top of her head. The superhero duo had been fighting for hours, with countless lucky charms on top of that. Theoretically, she wasn’t a hard Akuma to beat, she was just MAD and FAST.

Coughing up a storm, Chat tried a smirk as he looked up at his partner, “How sweet of you Bugaboo, looking out for me! Now if I knew you’d be this forward with your affection I would have accepted your love sooner!”

Ladybug was about to snap back a remark when she realized she had Chat pinned down. In an alleyway. In the dark in the middle of the night. The bug immediately turned a bright shade of crimson and scrambled off of him.

“Stupid cat. Are you ok? You took a serious blow there. IS THAT BLOOD?!”

Ladybug went into Mari-mom mode and checked out his injuries. He had a scrape down the side of his cheek and a busted lip that looked painful. Not to mention the kick he just took to the stomach.

Chat chuckled, “I’ve had worse Bug, you know that. Now,” he said while getting to his feet, “We have this dang Akuma to beat! What’s your next Lucky Charm, Spots?”

With a heavy sigh, Ladybug called her Lucky Charm and in her hands landed a polka-dotted pillow.

Ladybug instantly turned frantic, exclaiming, “What am I supposed to do with this???”

Chat smirked and took it from her. “I’ve got an idea, My Lady, just give me an opening ok?”

She gave a dull nod and Chat had a better view of her face. She had blood trickling down her face from a cut through her eyebrow and a nasty bruise forming on her forehead. He immediately realized she was on the verge of tears and patted her on the head. She rapidly blinked back the tears and let loose a giggle, not expecting the friendly gesture. He removed his hand and with a nod, they both went into the fray.

Ladybug immediately went to pull the Akuma away from Chat and yelled, “HEY NEEDLE LADY OVER HERE!”

Chat chuckled on the rooftop as his Lady drew the attention of the Akuma away from him. She was surprisingly not good with comebacks under stress, though she was great at everything else in a stressful situation.

Slowly, Chat crawled along the rooftop behind the spikey Akuma and sat in a pounce-ready position. Then, after a few moments, he jumped and smothered the Akuma with the pillow!

“QUICK LOVEBUG THE CROWN!”

Ignoring the “Lovebug” nickname, Ladybug quickly swung down and grabbed the crown off the poor girl’s head. Swiftly, she broke it in half over her knee and purified the Akuma. As soon as they saw the ladybugs fly and sent the torn designer on her way, both of the heroes collapsed on a nearby rooftop.

“Man, that was paw-sitively horrible my Lady! That took forever.”

The bluenette rolled her eyes and leaned against the chimney. “Well without you I don’t think it would have ever ended.”

“Such compliments Bugaboo! You might adopt a stray cat if you aren’t careful.”

She chuckled, “I already have, you mangy cat. Now, don’t you need to go to bed? You must have work in the morning.”

This was true. Adrien did have work in the morning, as his new job as a Lycées physics teacher called for the bright and shining hours of public school. He was finally, mostly, free from his father and had graduated last year at the age of 25 from University and had landed a job at his old school. However, Chat Noir had a moment alone with his Lady and he wasn’t going to waste it.

“Well, I don’t want to leave you all alone on this wonderful night! Who would keep you company?"

She sighed, "I have Tikki, Chat and that'll be enough."

He immediately pouted at the thought of it. His face then changed to a lit-up grin. "Race you to the tower!"

Before she could respond, Chat was already on the next rooftop over. She managed to yell out, "CHAT NOIR COME BACK HERE! YOU NEED SLEEP!" before he was too far gone. Ladybug then got up and sprinted to the Eiffel tower.

The race was on! The bluenette caught up quickly to Chat and they became neck to neck, swinging and jumping to their hearts' delight. After a few minutes of high-speed competition, the two landed on the tower at the same time and bumped into each other, fumbling into a tangled mess.

"HAHA, I WIN!" Ladybug smiled triumphantly and then realized the mess she was in. Somehow, twice in one day, she was on top of Chat in an uncomfortable position. Chat simply smirked.

"Well if this is what I get for losing I don't mind the view, My Lady."

Ladybug sputtered and turned beat red exclaiming, "W well there's not much to see." She quickly scampered off of him, careful not to hit him in any way. "What a mess today has been," she lamented. Her interview with the third designer this week had gone poorly, as when she had gotten there they already picked a new assistant. Marinette was beginning to lose hope she'd ever find a job within the fashion industry, and everything had gone so smoothly in college too, graduating a few months ago at 24. She earned her degree with flying colors and had a ton of sketches saved up from Lycees for her portfolio. On top of the failed job interview, her blouse was ruined by a late employee who tripped and spilled coffee all over it. Now, to top it all off, she put her partner in an awkward situation twice in one day! Not that he seemed to mind much, but she definitely did.

She was lost in thought when Chat got up and brushed himself off. Glancing over to his best friend he noticed her frown and scrunched up face. "Man she's cute when she's thinking like that," he thought but he knew he needed to snap her out of it. That was the whole point of racing to the tower! His lovebug was clearly having a bad day, her fighting was off all evening and she didn't blow him off nearly as much as she normally did. Operation happy bug was a go.

"Soooooo...Anything on your mind partner?"

Chat's quiet and concerned question broke the silence and brought Ladybug back to reality. Right. She was still on the tower with her best bud.

"I mean...kind of." An awkward pause filled the air and Chat gestured for her to continue. To his surprise, she did.

"My civilian life isn't going so well. I just graduated from college but I can't seem to land a job. I thought it would be easy with my skills but no one wants a newbie in areas I'm capable of.” Ladybug sighed, “I might have to work for my parents at this rate."

Chat was floored. She was talking about her civilian life. With. Him. And better yet, she had worked for her parents too! Not wanting to push anything, he stayed silent and waited for her to continue.

Not even noticing his freak out she continued, "I mean it wouldn't be too bad I just like being independent you know? I'm old enough to be on my own. It is kinda lonely right now though- Oop."

Suddenly, a familiar beeping filled the air. Ladybug reached up and touched her earrings. With a heavy sigh, she sat there for another minute until the sharp noise cut through the air again. Chat wanted to tell her it was alright, that he wouldn't mind if she stayed and talked as her normal, civilian self but he knew that was too much if she was already opening up like this. It was really getting late anyway.

"Well, my Lady, it seems our time has reached its end for today. You need a ride home? I heard it's dangerous at this time at night for a fair maiden like yourself."

A giggle reached his ears. "You're not getting that much out of me you silly cat. Now you know I can take care of myself. Maybe it should be me protecting you." With a wink, Ladybug jumped off the tower and swung across the cityscape. Chat, red from the wink, jumped off the tower himself and bounded across the rooftops to his humble home.

~*~

With a heavy sigh, Ladybug swung into her apartment through the only window she had. Her transformation fell to reveal Marinette in her pajamas and her long hair tumbling over her shoulders, a mess in itself. Already in the kitchen, she quickly grabbed a cookie from the batch she had cooked that afternoon and tossed it at Tikki. The bluenette immediately spun on her heel and made it to the small bedroom in the cramped apartment without even a second glance at her kwami.

"Wha- Marinette! That almost took off my head! What are you- wait! Mari!"

Tikki was frantically trying to put together what had just happened as Marinette walked into her bedroom and fell onto her bed. Promptly after, she screamed into her pillows.

Floating into the room cookie in hand, Tikki cautiously asked, “Marinette? Are you ok?”

The bluenette groaned, “No Tikki, I’m not. I was a mess today! I fell into Chat twice today and told him about my personal life, which was a big no-no but I couldn’t help it.” She peeked up from her pillow to look at Tikki. “He’s always worried about me nowadays so I figured I’d let him help me out y’know? Maybe it was a mistake.”

With a relaxed expression on her face, Tikki gracefully landed on one of the pillows Marinette was buried in. “Well, I don’t think that’s too bad Marinette. Maybe it’s time you grew closer, you are older now and more responsible.”

Marinette’s jaw dropped to the floor. Tikki was basically saying yes to revealing their identities?

Sputtering, the bluenette tried to come up with a response. “Tikki! T-that’s dangerous! What if we know each other in real life?!”

A sly grin grew on the kwami’s face, who was formulating a plan. “All the better! You two need to be growing closer and that would just be a step up from starting from scratch.”

Desperately trying to salvage her sanity, Marinette changed the topic saying, “W-well what about our suit designs? Do you want to go over them one more time before we show Chat?”

Her kwami, seeing her discomfort, nodded. The two of them had been working on these designs for almost a year -- they had to be perfect.

The Ladybug design had a black torso with a scoop neck, black lace-up boots, black leather gloves, and red legs and red sleeves with black spots. Her mask would remain the same and her hair would be in a high ponytail, topped with a red ribbon to keep it in place.

For Chat Noir, a leather jacket with green patches would adorn his black suit with a turtleneck neckline and green seams as well as similar boots to Ladybug's boots. He would still have his belt tail, ears, and mask, and Marinette and Tikki decided it was up to Chat to change his hair.

"I don't know what you're worried about Marinette, these are great!" The kwami floated up to the bluenette's face. Putting a paw up to her chosen's cheek, she added, "Chat will love his design, I'm sure of it!"

“I sure hope so Tiki. It would be bad if we spent all this time and he doesn’t.”

Tiki softened her gaze. She could see her chosen’s gears turning in her head and softly said, “Maybe it’s time for bed.”

Head spinning, Marinette agreed to call it a night at 4:34 in the morning. With a half-hearted mumble to Tiki for a goodnight, she passed out with her thoughts swimming with Chat.

~*~

“PLAGG! SHE OPENED UP TO ME!”

Adrien was dancing in his living room like a maniac, or what someone could presume was dancing, it was hard to tell. It really was a mass flinging around of limbs though.

“Calm down! She probably just had a bad day and needed a friend,” Plagg exasperated, “Why are you so excited anyway I thought you were over her? Or was that a bald-faced lie?”

The young man froze. His kwami was right, years earlier he had claimed he was over Ladybug when he had his relationship with Kagami, but that relationship ended on a real sour note. In the end, Kagami became controlling and restrictive with schedules and routines and Adrien became sick of it. The two of them broke up shortly after he brought it up, and he hasn’t really been the same since then.

“Well...Maybe I should give it a shot again Plagg. She seems more open these days and I’m trying to hold back my flirty remarks since she never really liked them, but I could try again.”

The kwami looked like his eyes were going to pop out of his little skull. If he had a skull. “Wait no, kid that’s not what I meant. You have it all wrong!”

Plagg tried to talk him out of it but he was already too far gone to listen.

“Just imagine Ladybug and me actually together Plagg! We could make it work with or without our identities, I don’t really care. I just want to show her how much she deserves!”

Plagg looked like he was about to implode. This absolutely couldn’t be happening. When his chosen had said he was over his superhero partner Plagg was ecstatic. He thought the boy could finally focus on Marinette and love her more realistically, but that Kagami got in the way. She even had the nerve to break his kitten’s heart! Now Adrien was going to focus on Ladybug again? What a mess.

“Look kid are you sure this is a good idea? She’s a great girl and all, but shouldn’t we keep the past in the past? I’m sure there are other girls that would-”

Plagg was cut off abruptly but a pretty pissed off young man.

“Plagg,” Adrian almost growled, “You told me once that Ladybug and Chat Noir were soulmates. I tried to believe we were just friends but there’s something there I just know it!”

Crap. Plagg was caught in the truth. When Adrian turned twenty, he had his loneliest birthday. No one was there. His father, like usual, was busy with some grand project. To cheer the young man up Plagg had shared that the two superheroes were soulmates, either platonic or lovers. Now it was coming to bit him in the arse. Plagg trod carefully with his next words.

“Alright, alright,” the kawmi hushed, “Let’s not get worked up. It’s late ok? If we don’t go to bed soon I’ll want more camembert.”

That worked. Adrian angrily huffed and stalked over to his bed. At 5:26 the superhero finally slipped into sleep, thoughts filled with the red heroine.

~*~

“TIKKI I’M LATE!”

Rushing through her room, Marinette ran throughout her small apartment trying to put together some sort of outfit. She had slept through 5 of her alarms, only barely waking up on the 6th one. Last night had been a tough battle and had lasted until 3 am, with her interview starting at 8 am which left Marinette frantically running out the door at 7:50.

“crapCrapCrApCRAP-”

Marinette looked like a madwoman running down the worn sidewalk towards her interview, casually across the street from her old school IFA Paris, which was at a cafe where she was meeting her potential boss.

Finally. She rounded the corner to find her destination in sight. The souls of her feet were pounding in to the pavement so hard her feet were starting to hurt after only five minutes of running. Marinette slowed to a brisk walk, not wanting to look like a fool. But a fool she was.

THUD. Marinette was on the ground in a daze. She had tripped on the sidewalk crack and was now literally kissing the pavement.

“How could this day get any worse?” The bluenette groaned.

As if on queue, screams filled the air. The young woman got up, dusted off her knees and portfolio, and quickly surveyed what was going on. People of all ages were running away from the college, and Marinette knew of the cause.

Another groan escaped her lips.

“Tikki do I have too?” She murmured.

A sharp jab to her side was a resounding “yes”. Quickly turning around, Marinette ran home as fast as she could. Fighting against the flow of traffic, she gripped tight to the work she was bringing to her interview and squeezed through. Confused pedestrians glanced at her for a quick moment but then decided that surviving the current attack was more important.

She made it back to her apartment quickly and scrambled inside. Throwing her portfolio on the counter, she wasted no time.

“Tikki, SPOTS ON!”

After the young woman was enveloped by a blinding light, Ladybug jumped out her window. Free falling for a split second, she launched her yo-yo into the air and latched on to a nearby chimney. The chase was on.

The freedom of flight -- well almost flight -- was liberating. She swung through the cityscape with ease, bending, and twirling through the streets she called home. Soon, Ladybug had made it to the college and was looking around for the Akuma.

There.

In a flash, she jumped in the air. CRASH. The roof next to her was shattered by what seemed to be a...mace of paper? The heroine swung to the next rooftop over to gain a better view of the situation.

The Akuma was on some sort of paper airplane and had a paper figure to match. Complex folds and creases made the outline of what seemed to be a person, though the figure’s paper body was covered and dripping in ink. It oozed a thick, black substance. Now that she was thinking about it, the roof that she had been on was now covered in the gloop and it seemed...to be dissolving it?

Another booming noise filled the air and Ladybug jumped onto another rooftop. A race began, with the spotted heroine jumping rooftop to rooftop, trying to avoid any civilians.

“Where the hell is Chat?” Ladybug murmured, dodging another heavy blow to a roof.

As if on queue, the leather-clad hero jumped in the way of the next attack, blocking the mace with his baton, preventing damage to the millionth roof in this debacle.

“Hello my Lady! Sorry, I was late, was caught up at work.” Chat grunted, still bearing the weight of the large paper mace. Pushing up on the weapon, Chat Noir then backflipped into the air and landed next to Ladybug. Though to his confusion, Ladybug’s eyes looked like saucers and her mouth opened just a tad.

“I could kiss her like that,” the hero thought in his confusion.

“Chat, Chat is your suit and kwami ok? The ooze- JUMP!”

Ladybug quickly found a spot on his arm not covered with the gunky stuff and pulled him down to the street as the mace almost came down on them. She scanned the street desperately trying the find a water source. Swiftly she found a fire hydrant and kicked with all the force she could muster.

“Damn.” She said as the fire hydrant came clean off, spewing water everywhere. Trying not to lose focus, the heroine shoved Chat Noir into the spray, wasting no time.

“What the- LADYBUG!” Chat sputtered and a chill ran down his spine. He quickly fought her and overcame the heroine but the damage was done. Chat Noir was soaked.

Now Chat rarely used profanity, but being soaked as Chat Noir was something entirely different. His cat instincts had kicked in, and he was trying desperately not to mewl in distress. Over the years they became more attuned with their kawamis, and this moment was very clear to Chat that Plagg was pissed.

“Fucks sake bugaboo what was that about?” He was gritting his teeth, trying to figure out the weird looks the spotted hero was giving him.

“You aren’t hurt? Let me see-” She almost whimpered, and now Chat was severely confused. What the hell was she on about and why was she suddenly on the verge of tears?

In a blur, Chat scooped up the young woman and used his baton to leap onto the next rooftop over. Trying desperately to figure out what had caused such an odd move, the hero was careful while holding her. Something was clearly wrong.

“Look bugaboo,” he hushed, “I can tell you’re distressed but right now we have an Akuma to beat.”

Ladybug slid out of his arms and dusted herself off, trying to hide her fear. The heroine has been almost slapped by a sudden wash of panic and patted her cheeks. This was no time to lose focus.

“LUCKY CHARM!”

In her hands landed a wet towel, covered in a lucky charm’s normal spots. The blood drained from her face. Wouldn’t this hurt the Akuma? Ladybug swallowed nervously.

“Here goes nothing,” she mumbled quietly.

Chat was studying her closely, perplexed. What was up with her lately? Suddenly, he dived into her, blocking her from an oncoming attack. They were slow today, way to slow.

“Alright bugaboo let’s get this show on the road.” Chat deflected another attack, this time noticing the ooze. Oh. OH. Now looking at Ladybug, he remembered her reaction after being covered in the goop. Thinking quickly, he swiftly jumped up and deflected the next blow.

“BUGABOO NOW. Snap out of it, I’m ok,” he added softer, “You can check me as soon as this fight is over.”

Snapping into action, Ladybug ran around the possessed person and smothered the paper figure’s head with the wet towel, wondering if the same trick would work twice. It did. A scream rang through the air. Chat winced but looked for the object in question. Spotting a bracelet with the words I Love You engraved on it, he saw his chance.

“CATACLYSM!”

The figure had stopped screaming by now with Ladybug releasing the Akuma from her grasp. The possessed face was melted, crumbling by the second. Scared, the poor figure whimpered. Ladybug scooped up the now released butterfly into her yo-yo and silently let it free. She then went and fixed everything, and did her usual “Are you ok?” to the poor person who was caught in Hawkmoth’s spell. Then, without a word, she ran.

“LADYBUG!” Chat was frantic. He quickly put the civilian on the ground and chased after her.


	2. An Unexpected Proposal

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you have, thank you for sticking around for chapter two! It really means a lot. I want to thank my main beta-reader/friend that helped me get this chapter out so fast! I hope you enjoy this chapter <33 ~ QueenTora

Leaping across Parisian roofs, Chat could still see a small outline of his Lady. She was swinging and running at full speed to an unknown destination. She wouldn’t pick up calls, and Tikki clearly wasn’t getting through to her. They had transformed and de-transformed multiple times by now and Plagg was clearly worried at their last recharge. 

“Damn,” he gasped, “how much longer is she going to run?” 

Desperate to catch up, he dug his heels into the rooftop and launched himself into the air as high he could. Flying through the air, he got about halfway closer before finally descending. With a growl, he hit the next rooftop and sprinted as fast as he could without feeling like death, which was soon approaching.

He was growing even more worried by the second, and in an anguished attempt to reach the polka-dotted heroine he screamed, “LADYBUG STOP, PLEASE! LET ME TALK TO YOU!”

Surprisingly, the figure in front of him slowed down a bit. Not what he expected. Slowing to her pace, he tried again.

“PLEASE BUGABOO STOP, IT’S BEEN HOURS.”

That part was 100% true. He had called his work about 30 minutes into the chase saying he had a family emergency due to the Akuma attack seeing that the chase wouldn’t end anytime soon. The principal was a little pissed about it but took it with a grain of salt and let him go.

The young woman had slowed even more, coming to a sluggish jog. Chat slowed down too, trying to catch his breath. As he carefully came closer he heard the snifflings of someone who was crying. Panic surged through him and he swiftly came around her to catch at least a glimpse of his Lady’s face. 

Tears had been long gone, as their remnants were dried up, little rivers on her face. The noises remained. Sniffling, choking, and sobbing filled the air, with Chat’s cat ears swiveling to pick up the sounds.

“Oh my Lady,” he hushed pitifully, “what has the world done to you?”

Ladybug crumpled to the ground, legs given up from exhaustion. Her wailing got louder, with the young woman trying to fill her lungs with air at each sob. Chat gently scooped her up, trying to figure out what to do. The public couldn’t see her like this and luckily Chat could write off the running escapade as them racing or doing patrol. 

The sky was painted in beautiful shades of magenta and violet, the colors dancing together in the sky as if it were a slow waltz with the emerging stars. Stars were just starting to peek through the clouds in shimmery golds as Chat readjusted so Ladybug could cry into his shoulder. Gracefully jumping from building to building, the leather-clad hero had an idea.

“Let’s go to the tower, bugaboo,” he whispered in her ear as the sobs became more like whimpers, “We need to wind down a bit.”

Using his baton, he launched them into the sky, almost melting like dark chocolate into the oncoming darkness. After a few moments, the two heroes were on top of the Eiffel Tower -- again. Chat set her down gently, scared if he made the wrong move that she would fall apart once more but she didn’t. Ladybug curled up into a little ball as if she were a small child again and continued to softly whimper. He sat next to her and stretched out, careful not to bump the fragile figure he called his partner.

“Do..do you want to talk about it lovebug?”

A loud sniffle reached his ears.

“Well,” Ladybug tearly mumbled, “I’ve just been having a tough time like I said last night.” she burrowed her head into her knees. “Dumb Akuma had me miss another interview today.”

Chat’s mouth made a small “o” shape as he cautiously scooted closer. He also noticed that she didn’t stop him from saying “lovebug” though he let it slide.

“You talked about you having a rough civilian life right now last night too, but that can’t be everything right?” he asked carefully, “Is there something else bothering you?”

“There was you getting crazy hurt yesterday and-” she stopped short. Sadness drained from her face swiftly and in its place came rage. “AND THAT STUPID MAN- NO BOY!”

Chat sprawled back a little. Uh oh.

“Uh...A ma- boy?”

“YES!” she growled, “He freaking BROKE UP WITH ME on our 10th ANNIVERSARY!”

Now it was Chat’s turn to be angry. He had known his Lady was dating someone for a while but he didn’t know it was for that long, nor did he know he was such an asshole.

“Wha- who would do such a thing?!” he exclaimed, now more pissed off then his partner.

The color died from her face again, and tears began to trickle down her face. From a few tears to thousands, Ladybug’s mood flipped like a switch once more. Instinctually flattening his ears from the sound alone Chat regretted everything he had ever done in his whole life.

“Ah no bugaboo,” he whispered while pulling her close, “I’m sorry, really it’s ok.”

The relentless falling of tears slowed somewhat as she replied, “No, no it’s my fault for falling apart. I shouldn’t have told you about my civilian life any way I-”

“No. You should. Ladybug, I’m here for you no matter what. As a partner, and as a friend.”

She stared at him in awe, tears still falling down her face and into her lap.

“Do you really mean it?” she hushed pathetically as if the heroine wasn’t sure she should say it.

Chat nodded, and his partner rammed him in the gut with a hug. Suppressing a grunt from the impact, he was in heaven. Her hug was tight and strong like he knew from encounters in the past, but this one had a softness to it. Like usual, their miraculous then beeped as if on queue. Though Ladybug didn’t budge.

“Um…” Chat was unsure what to do. Another minute passed and once more a shrill beep echoed through the air and she hadn’t moved. Finally, after two more beeps, the spotted heroine reluctantly let go but at the turn of a shocking remark.

“Stay.” she softly spoke, almost too soft for Chat’s enhanced hearing.

“I- I uh-” he stumbled and couldn’t think straight. What the actual fuck was going on?

She jumped up and pulled him around the corner without making eye-contact. As the last beep shrilled through the air, the young woman ducked on the other side of the Eiffel Tower’s tip. Chat was still in shock as his transformation fell. A quiet hushed over the two adults, neither willing to make the first move. Two more voices then shattered the silence. 

“MAR- LADYBUG WHAT WAS THAT ABOUT?!” a high-pitched voice shot through the air.

“I don’t know but I hope it’s over now,” said a lower, but still higher then the two heroes’ voices, “I was worried we were going to run out of cheese.”

Suddenly, another kwami appeared in Adrien’s view. Recognizing it as Tikki, the young man winced. This was going to be rough, or so he thought.

“I’m so sorry for my chosen’s behavior,” said the spotted deity, “We had a talk last night but I didn’t know she’d do this-”

“TIKKI I’M FED UP WITH LIFE LET ME HAVE THIS!” almost screamed a de-transformed Marinette on the other side of the point. 

“NO THIS ISN’T THE RIGHT TIME LADY-”

“THEN-” Marinette uttered weakly, “Then when is?”

Another silence came over the four figures. Plagg and Adrien exchanged awkward glances. Plagg’s eyes were wide and his chosen knew that meant bad news. 

“Uh um,” the young man waved at Tikki, “Are we still talking about revealing our identities? You talked about it?!”

Tikki rubbed her face with her little paw-things.

“Yes yes we did, but I THOUGHT she would THINK about it more! Not doing it on a WHIM!” almost screamed the small red-and-black figure. 

“Ok sugarcube,” hushed Plagg, “This may not be the time to yell, but I agree this shouldn’t have happened. Let them talk it out.”

With a huff, Tikki got quiet. Plagg gestured to Adrien and the chosen man realized it was his turn to talk.

“Um, my Lady?” he started.

“....Yes?

“Why did you do this so suddenly? I thought- I thought you wanted to wait until after Hawkmoth’s defeat?”

The bluenette sighed.

"Yes, yes I did, but I'm getting tired of all the downs and I'm wanting just one good moment." she added softly, "At least I hope it'll be good."

Adrien realized he was holding his breath after a few moments. Was she serious? He honestly was doubting himself too much to tell. The young man steeled himself and stood a little taller. Here goes nothing.

“Well bugaboo,” he started, trying to keep his composer, “do you really want to know who I am right now, or do you just want something good?”

Marinette hesitated. What did she want? A few moments of quiet passed and Adrien began to crumble, seeing as maybe she didn’t want it after all. Plagg and Tikki shared looks for a second and shared a nod, both knowing what to do. Plagg went around the spike and floated in front of Marinette for a few seconds before speaking, and Tikki did the same for Adrien.

“Look,” Plagg began, “We both know you want to know your identities, each of you-”

Plagg stopped to glance at Tikki, who gave him a nod of approval so the black kwami continued.

“But right now is not the time.”

“That’s right, I’m sorry for yelling at you Ladybug but doing it in a spur-of-the-moment way isn’t the best possible course of action,” added Tikki softly, now back to her normal calm composure. 

Both of the young adults shrunk a little. The kwamis shared glances again and switched places so that they were in front of their chosens. Tikki gave Marinette the biggest hug she could and Plagg patted Adrien on the head -- which was the highest praise from Plagg -- to which the young man lit up slightly. A nice quiet settled over the four for a few minutes but the wise deities knew they couldn’t make it last long, it was the middle of the night after all.

“So,” Plagg gingerly stated, “Let’s transform and go home alright? You two can text each other when you’re both in bed and safe at home, not de-transformed on top of one of the world’s most famous towers.”

Adrien regained his confidence, “That’s a good plan my Lady, what do you think? I’d love to fall asleep talking to you as I don’t have work tomorrow,” he took a deep breath, “You can talk about anything you want, I’ll be there to listen.”

Marinette sighed defeatedly, “Yes, yes it is kitty. Tikki I’m sorry I didn’t mean to yell I'm just-”

“Frustrated?” the spotted kwami giggled.

Marinette nodded. Plagg snickered and Adrien glared at him, making the mental communication, “Not the time.”

“Alright!” Tikki clapped, “Time to go home Ladybug, oh and it was nice seeing you Chat Noir. Can I have a cookie please?”

Marinette nodded again and handed Tikki a cookie. Adrien gave Plagg his last piece of camembert he had on him, doing the same for his kwami. The two heroes then transformed and faced each other again. This time, Chat Noir noticed how tired his Lady looked and made a mental note not to keep her up too late. 

“Hey, kitty?”

“Yes, bugaboo?”

“Did you mean you’ll stay up with me until we fall asleep?”

Chat softly smiled, pulling Ladybug into a strong but gentle hug. She immediately melted into it; it was unlike their previous hug where it was desperate and needy as this one was calm and safe. They stood like that for a good couple of minutes, enjoying each other’s presence. That was something the two of them had down to a science -- trusting each other. However, they couldn’t stand there forever so the two split apart, almost reluctantly.

Carefully, Chat bent down so that they were eye-to-eye and whispered, “Always lovebug.”

A small smile danced upon Ladybug’s lips as she gave him a small kiss on the right cheek, then hesitating slightly before kissing the left cheek, and lastly, she swung out into the night to her empty apartment to talk to Chat for the rest of the night.

~*~

BEEP BEEP BEEP.

Marinette stirred in her bed dully, slapping a pillow over her ear and rolling over. The phone that was now on the other side of her was ringing loudly and annoyingly. Tikki stretched as big as she could on her favorite pillow before getting up to check on the disturbing device. She first checked the time, noticing it was already 1 o'clock in the afternoon. The deity giggled to herself as she remembered that the two heroes had been up talking to each other way into the night, only stopping from talking after the bluenette had passed out at 3:57 am. Chat had sent a variety of worried messages until Tikki had sleepily responded that Ladybug had fallen asleep. The small figure then decided to check on what was making the ridiculous noise, to which she saw Alya’s name.

“Mari,” started the kwami, “Alya is calling.”

“That’s great Tikki,” Marinette replied as she nuzzled deeper into the covers.

“She’s going to be mad if you don’t respond Marinette.”

“Mhm.”

Tikki realized the conversation was going nowhere, so she simply said, “Chat’s calling.”

Marinette sprung up so fast Tikki fell off the bed, tumbling onto the floor. The young woman grimaced after she heard a small “oof” noise for the floor below. 

“Sorry Tikki!”

Marinette swiftly slid off her bed onto the cool floorboards and scooped the small deity up. 

“Are you ok?? I didn’t mean to throw you off!” the young woman exclaimed, checking for any injuries.

Tikki burst into a fit of giggles. The bluenette was confused. What was she missing?

“Someone totally has a crush~” the small figure started floating in the air and did little looptiy-loops of joy.

Marinette turned a bright shade of crimson and managed to squeak out, “What?! No, I don’t!”

The deity kept giggling and doing little tricks while the young woman looked for a way out of the conversation. Spotting her phone, the heroine grabbed it and looked at the caller id. Her heart sank a little when she saw it was on her normal phone and not her burner phone she talked to Chat on, but saw it was Alya as Tikki had said and picked up the call.

“MARIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!”

Marinette flinched as the squeal-scream met her ears after just waking up, but she managed to get out a, “Yes?”

“Youaren’tgoingtobelievethis!”

The blunette wondered what on earth her best friend was going on about. Was there another Akuma? Did Nino get another record deal?

“What is it Alya?”

“LADYBUG AND CHAT NOIR WERE CAUGHT HUGGING FOREVER LAST NIGHT!”

Mari choked on her own spit. 

“Uh um what?” She managed to force out.

“They were caught on their normal spot, the top of the tower, by a night-time news crew the nearest building over! It’s really blurry, but who else could it be?!”

Oh, how stupid she was, thinking she could have just one uninterrupted night with her partner. Of course, the dang news would have picked up on her stunt yesterday and noticed something was up!

“That’s...That’s great Alya. Is there any other reason you’re calling?”

“Oh right! Did you get the email you-know-who sent out in the morning?!”

Now the heroine was confused. Did she sleep through something important...again?

“Uh...no?”

Another scream reached the poor bluenette’s ears.

“WHAT?! CHECK YOUR DAMN EMAIL DUPAN-CHANG!”

With a grumble, Marinette opened up her inbox and almost dropped her phone. She had a message from Gabrial Agreste. Opening it without any hesitation, she quickly read the message.

“Dear Ms. Dupan-Chang,

You are formally invited to join the Agrestes and the rest of your old classmates from your Lycées class on a trip to the Agreste winter estate from New Year's Eve to the end of January. Please make your RSVP quickly as this was a last-minute decision. 

Cordially,  
Gabriel Agreste”

Now it was Marinette’s turn to scream, which only resulted in a fit of giggles from Alya, who was still on the other end. Tikki had been reading over her shoulder and the kwami’s eyes were wide open.

“I- I-”

“Crazy right?” Alya chuckled, not wanting to panic her best friend, but it was too late.

“GABRIEL AGRESTE WANTS US TO GO TO HIS WINTER ESTATE? US?” the heroine screamed at the top of her lungs.

“I KNOW RIGHT?” Alya squealed. 

The two women continued like that for quite some time, and it wasn’t until an hour later that Alya brought up a very important question.

“Are you going to go?”

Marinette froze. Of course, she wanted to go, but she had Paris to protect. Chat Noir could stay behind, but maybe he would have an obligation that week as well. The poor woman was torn.

“I don’t know Alya,” she started, “I’ll have to make sure I’m free and my parents will be ok with me gone for a month, you know I help out at least once a week.”

This was true. To make up the difference in rent she had been working part-time at her parent’s bakery, though her fear was having to work there full time.

“I already checked with them Mari, they are totally ok with it. Now you have no other excuses.”

Crap.

The bluenette sigh in defeat and mumbled, “You’re right Alya, I need a break anyway.”  
“That’s right girl!” Alya exclaimed bubbly, “You might have a chance to show off your designs, and possibly land a job!”

Marinette lit up at the idea and squealed, “Oh my gosh you’re totally right Alya! This could be my chance!”

The heroine’s best friend chuckled again. She knew that would have worked, Marinette was desperate for a fashion job.

“Alright well, I’ll come over tomorrow to talk out some ideas with you ok? I know you’re already thinking of ideas.”

“You know it Alya, I can’t wait!”

The two young women exchanged a few more remarks before hanging up. The room became still. Neither Marinette nor Tikki moved from their spots, absorbing what had just happened. After a few minutes, the two individuals shared a look. They were thinking about the same thing.

What were they going to do?

~*~

Adrien was up early that morning, considering he hadn’t slept at all. His talks with Ladybug kept him up late and he enjoyed every minute of it. The young man was staring at the ceiling as his thoughts wandered around his mind. Ladybug had never been so raw with him before. Checking the time again, it was 2 pm. 

“Wow,” he murmured, “I’ve been in bed that long?” 

“Yes, yes you have been.” said a dull voice on the other side of the small room. 

The hero sat up sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Sorry Plagg, you probably want to talk to me huh?”

“Yep.”

A kwami of getting the point, Plagg sat on Adrien’s knee and began his spell.

“So last night was, uh, odd I know,” the deity paused to form his thoughts but resumed quickly, “And it came to a shock to me too that Tikki considered revealing you’re identities. It makes sense but doesn’t all at once, right?”

Adrien nodded. It was a bit confusing, but after seeing the state his Lady was in he knew something had to change. She wasn’t going to make it much farther at this rate.

“So I’ve come to a conclusion, we-”

Suddenly there was a faint knock towards the front of the apartment. The two individuals shared a look before Adrien got up and threw a shirt on. The young man made his way to the door and had a bad feeling, leaving only one person to fit the bill. 

Cautiously opening the door, Adrien let out, “Hello Father.”

Gabriel Agreste was standing almost in the door frame from where his tall frame stood, still as intimidating as ever. He had aged well over the last ten years, only gaining wrinkles over time. He was still a slim man, though his hair was graying from his platinum blond to a silvery grey. After a few moments of silence, the businessman grunted. Adrien realized his father was still standing in the hallway.

“Ah excuse me, Father,” the young man started, “would you like to come in?”

Without any further prompting, Gabriel walked in and surveyed his son’s small apartment. It was tidy, as the young man had been trained to do so as a boy, but it was still homey. Monsieur Agreste hated it. He went and sat down on the worn-down couch Nino had given Adrien when Alya had moved in with the DJ. Quickly Adrien followed his father into the living room after shutting the door, making a quick stop to turn on his electric kettle in his kitchen. Maybe some tea would calm the tension.

The young man eyed his father warily, wondering what could have brought him to his apartment in person. The silence soaked into the cracks in the wall, drawing out the noise from his neighbor's apartments as if the world was begging for the older gentleman to leave. In an effort to figure out what was going on, Adrien tried to start a conversation while the water came to a boil.

“So, Father,” the young man began, “What brings you to my, uh, apartment? Usually, if you have an issue you call, did I miss an appointment-”

“You did nothing of the sort.” Gabriel said abruptly and continued, “Did you check your email this morning? There was an important message there.”

Oop. Adrien quickly checked his phone which he had slipped in the pocket of his basketball shorts before leaving the bedroom. He opened up his inbox, to which he found an email from his father. The hero skimmed over the message, mouth agape.

“You...you invited all my old friends to our winter estate for the holidays?!”

“Yes I did Adrien,” Monsieur Agreste began, “I felt like it was the right action as you need a break from your work and your friends probably do also.”

The kettle whistled, and Adrien swiftly poured the water into two cups that had tea packets in them and brought the cups on a small plater to the couch. Sitting on the floor on the opposite side of the couch, the two men drank their tea in silence. The younger of the two was absolutely losing his mind as his father had a small grin growing on his face.

“I know I know,” stated Gabriel, “it’s a bit shocking yes but I thought ten years was a good number.”

Ten whole years. Adrien was brought back to the night before, where his Lady had been crying over some jerk would have seemingly lead her on for that long. He couldn’t even imagine what that felt like.

“Adrien.”

The young man snapped to attention, sheepish that he had grown into a dazed state. He nodded in recollection and the older man continued.

“So I expect you to be there. Understood?”

The young man panicked and threw out, “What about work? The school can’t expect-”

“Already solved. I brought in a reliable replacement that school approved for the month”

Damn. Adrien sighed.

“Ok Father, I’ll go.”

“Good.”  
Without another word, Gabriel got up and walked to the door. Resting his hand on the doorknob he calmly stated, “You have four months, seeing it is August. I’ll see you then.”


End file.
